Take your Paleo meals up a notch with my tried-and-true formula for balanced meals that will leave you satisfied & full for hours.

I’ve had a couple of recipes on the back burner that I really enjoyed this summer. We had a really amazing trip/move to Portland and as we are settling in, I figure I should get sharing again! I make a lot of solo lunches so I try to find easy ways to get food in my mouth during busy days that won’t create a lot of dishes. This recipe is a favorite of mine. I definitely eat a lot of tasty cold salads with leftover meat or canned tuna (Wild Planet friends, holla) but they just don’t stack up to a fresh salad with warm, just-cooked protein on top. It warms the dressing and brings all those flavors out.

I enjoy salmon cooked about any way you can dream up. But there are definitely ways to enhance salmon’s naturally fatty flavor profile. One of those ways is with asian inspired ingredients like lime juice, sesame, cumin, cilantro. Kind of like this super easy salad with plenty of healthy fats, nutrients, and flavor for a very satisfying meal.

Get your pan super hot to sear both sides (and get a crispy skin) while leaving the center a juicy medium rare.

Easy Salmon Salad with Lime Vinaigrette

Yields: 1 servings (can be doubled, tripled etc)

1 4-6 oz. filet wild-caught salmon

1 tsp. ground cumin

organic garlic salt

ground pepper

Lime Vinaigrette

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp. fresh lime juice (about ½ large lime)

½ tsp. dijon mustard

1 tsp. honey

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/8 tsp. black pepper

To Assemble:

salad greens & veggies of choice

avocado oil, for cooking

Optional: sesame seeds or chopped cilantro, for garnish

Directions:

Season all sides of the salmon with cumin, garlic salt, and pepper, to taste. Heat a cast iron (or non-stick) skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the avocado oil and then the salmon. Cook the salmon until brown on both sides, about 2-3 minutes per side for thicker belly pieces and 1-2 minutes per side for tail pieces. Remove from heat and set it aside to rest.

Prepare a garden salad with seasonal greens and veggies of your choice. Make the vinaigrette by combining the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, and honey in a small bowl. Whisk until emulsified. Toss the salad with the dressing. Top with cooked salmon and garnish with sesame seeds, as desired.